Child Abuse And Neglect Legal Questions

You should hire experienced defense counsel you trust as soon as possible because once you give a statement to the police then trying to fix that initial mistake can cost a lot more down the road to try and exclude that evidence in court for use later in the case, if one is filed.  Before a case is filed then there is a chance a good lawyer can persuade the DA to not file the case against you.... Read More

I'm assuming you are in the middle of a CPS conservatorship proceeding.  If you have completed all your services under your family plan of service, then ask your attorney to file for motion for return of the children or a Motion for Monitored Return.  This is the part where you will have a period of time to demonstrate you have learned the parenting techniques and ability to provide a safe and protective home environment free from CPS involvement.  The case will most likely close upon the Department's filing of a Motion for Nonsuit.  You will also need to be sure the attorney ad litem for the children is on board with this as well.... Read More

It is impossible for you to "know for a fact" that your 19 year old doesn't smoke marijuana around your 5 year old - or have him around someone who does- when you're not around unless you have her under 24/7 surveillance. She may be the subject of the CPS investigation but you could be next, and you may be in danger of losing custody of your 5 year old unless you get someone other than your 19 year old to take care of him when you're not around. You've already said there's a 2 1/2 hr window of time every school morning when she's alone with him and that she picks him up from school. You didn't say what time you get home but obviously she has a great deal of time to smoke around him- or have him around other people who do. If she has a car she could be smoking in her car or have someone in her car who smokes. Or she could be getting a lift from someone who smokes. You've given your 19 year old an enormous responsibility, and it's time for you to get someone else involved in taking care of your 5 year old- and let your 19 year old know how serious the situation is. If someone thinks your daughter has smoked massive amounts of marjuana since November, and the school smelled it on your son, and he was acting confused (sign of a contact high)- you've got a serious problem on your hands. Make your daughter understand that unless she cleans up her act she may not be able to live in the same house as your 5 year old. Marijuana may be legal, but exposing a child to it is not. child abuse.... Read More

Good afternoon, please contact the FL child abuse hotline. You can google it. You are required by law to report child abandonment to the child abuse hotline. The department of children and families will become involved and will take the necessary action including a court case if warranted. The children should be placed with you because you are the relatives and they are in good hands. I cannot guarantee the latter. If you want legal representaiton, contact the Florida Bar Lawyer Referral Service and ask for a Juvenile lawyer in your area.... Read More

Given the nature of your great granddaughter's injury and the lack of any explanation for it by the parents, it is unlikely that CPS will close its investigation quickly.  A broken arm with no logical explanation of the cause is itself a sign of abuse or neglect.  If the child herself is too young to be able to describe what happened, the child is too young to be left alone without adult supervision.The parents need to retain a family law attorney with experience handling CPS cases in or near the county where the case is pending.... Read More

Not sure whast you are asking, but this is likely to be something you will have to deal with if your son is involved with others unsupervise with various mental disabilities. There is no practical means to address others mistaking his conduct or actions. Thankfully, the prosecutor declines prosecution. ... Read More

It is hard to know from your questions exactly what your remedies will be.    I assume you are an adult now.    At the time, a call to CPS would have been appropritate if there was abuse of neglect.   I do not see any mention of that, or details of why you were available for adoption in the first place, how old you were at the adoption, etc.  Civil suits have statutes of limitations just like criminal suits, so the amount of time that has passed will affect your possible recourse.    If you are only recently adult and the neglect happened in the last few years, you might be able to bring a case.   If you are more than 25 or so years old, it is probably too late.   Being able to bring a lawsuit is very different from being able to win that suit.   Being left outside all day may not be considered abusive to the court (the court hears a lot of terrible abuse cases every week), there are many details that would have to be elicited.  Even if you do sue and win, your recovery would be limited.   If the adopted parents don't have significant resources they might not be able to pay a judgment.    You will definitely need an attorney to do this - you can't pick up the skills you'd need quickly enough.   Look for family lawyers in the county where you and the adopted parents live.   It will be very expensive and you have a low liklihood of winning.  I can tell there is a lot of pain and anger, so some time with a therapist may be a better use of your time and energy.   ... Read More

Yes, it is possible to sue a family member for sexual abuse that occurred during the period when you were a child. First there is a statute of limitations that applies to your case, and the statute of limitation is sometimes suspended until the age of 18, when it starts to run again. Secondly, insurance policies that would cover the negligent party that knew or should've known of the sexual abuse but failed to intervene to stop it, may provide a defense and coverage to that third-party, But those insurance policies Often times have an exclusion for a family member who permanently resides at the residence as opposed to a family member who is visiting that residence.. So if you were a part-time resident or living temporarily at that house,  there may be coverage that you could pursue. You should discuss your case with counsel in a private phone consultation regarding all the facts and circumstances. And finally, in order to have credibility, you should at least have some kind of evidence that you can produce that would support or corroborate the claims that you were making. For example did you ever tell another person about this abuse when it was happening? Did you keep a diary of what was going on? What evidence do you have that would corroborate your claims, other than your own he said she said evidence?... Read More

Most likely not because the states interest in obtainining the Samples outweigh your religious liberties. However if there is no probable cause to effectuate the search and seizure of evidence they want, you can retain an attorney and file a motion with the court to stop their attempt. ... Read More

Your friend can file a lawsuit against those parties who both molested her, as well as any third-party who knew or should've known of the child molestation but failed to take measures to inform the police. If that person was molested in a home, where the third-party had homeowners or rental insurance, there would be a source of recovery that she could sue for. Discuss your case with counsel on contingency fee, which means she doesn't pay anything unless she wins The case. I cocounsel with attorneys in California  on these cases, and I have had a lot of success with them. The statute of limitations is suspended in California during the period that the child was a minor, so there may be enough time that she can bring her case. Discuss with counsel.... Read More

So a child who was sexually assaulted can institute a legal claim against the homeowner and hold the adult responsible who knew or should've known of the sexual assault on the child, and therefore the action would be grounded in negligence. Insurance companies will cover The negligent party adult who knew or should've known of this conduct but failed to take action to stop it. You can always pursue a claim against the perpetrator but homeowners insurance will only cover negligence and not intentional conduct. Most insurance policies have what's called resident relative exclusions, meaning that if the child was visiting the household where the sexual assault occurred, then the insurance company will cover the claim, but if the child actually lived in the residence, then the resident relative exclusion will bar recovery on the child's claim. Any proceeds that are recovered will be placed in a child's annuity and distributed when the child reaches the age of majority. I have done several of these claims, and the language in the homeowners insurance policies will be dispositive of whether the claim can be successful. Feel free to call me to discuss your case 407-581-2581... Read More

Yes, you can press charges against your abuser. Your first step is to file a police report and they will take your witness statement and take any evidence that you collected like DNA samples or other similar Evidentiary samples. In addition, you may have a lawsuit against your abuser for sexual molestation and battery, and a lawsuit against any of his accomplices that allowed the abuse to go on on the theory of negligence. Furthermore, you should document your injuries by seeing on a continuous basis a psychologist or other psychiatric medical professional to work through your issues and to prove that you have suffered emotional distress and mental anguish damages from these occurrences. Discuss your civil case with counsel on contingency fee, which means you don't pay anything unless you win the case. I have many years of experience doing sexual abuse cases in civil court, and I associate with counsel in California on my California sexual molestation cases.  ... Read More

If mom knew and failed to put an end to the sexual abuse, then her homeowners insurance policy ,in effect at the time of the incidents, would most likely pay out the policy limits which could be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. My co-counsel is in California. Would love to discuss your case on the phone. Feel free to call anytime. 407-581-2581   OK if you were raped by your stepfather, and your mother was well aware of that fact, then your mother could potentially be exposed to civil liability and your stepfather could be exposed to both civil and criminal liability. You should discuss your case with counsel on a possible contingency fee basis, which means you don't pay anything unless you win. The statue of limitations may become an issue, but because you are a minor there is a period of time in which it is tolled or in laypersons terms ,suspended, until you reach the age of majority. But I would not hesitate to discuss this case with a private attorney in a private phone conversation. Who owned the home that you were raped in? and when did the last rape incident occur?... Read More